More Alphabet Soup

One of the activities I am going to do with my staff is have them brainstorm what we are "all about". I won an award this spring and spent a great deal of time reflecting on the strengths of our campus, staff, students, culture... (Watch more about that here: HEB video ). My plan is to organize all of the great comments that they will share into these four categories: Advocating for children; Being a team player; Creating instructional success; Demonstrating leadership skills. Every activity, tradition, and belief that I can think of can fall into one of those categories. We are going to recognize them as the cornerstones of our campus beliefs.

Then, each month, one staff member will be recognized at our staff seminar (my fancy word for the faculty meeting... because it is an instructional seminar, not just "sit-and-get"). They will get to house a special trophy and have their picture taken/displayed all month. We will also present them with a pin and certificate so that they will have a tangible reward to keep. (This is an awesome site for free certificates: certificatestreet). At the next monthly staff seminar, they will pass the trophy on to a staff member that has demonstrated that same quality. The only caveat, however, is that the new recipient may not be on their team. This way we will continue to build strong relationships across grade levels and departments.

Thanks to that awesome principal Kelly Gerletti for sharing the staff recognition idea with me! I loved it, stole it, and am tweaking it to make it work for us (which means it must go into the alphabet soup!) It is a perfect addition to this "recipe" for a great year!

Here are some samples of what I think the staff may share (although they will certainly expand the list, I have no doubt!)

4 awards
A and B
C and D